The Cross

          

            The cross stands at the very center of our faith and its meaning has been explored down through the centuries.  The truth is that our explanations, while interesting and helpful, always seem to fall short.  C. S. Lewis put it well when he wrote in Do Souls Go To Heaven:

            “We are told that Christ was killed for us, that His death has washed out our sins, and that           by dying He disabled death itself.  That is the formula.  That is Christianity.  That is what      has to be believed.  And theories we build up as to how Christ’s death did all this are, in           my view, quite secondary: mere plans or diagrams to be left alone if they do not help us,       and, even if they do help us, not to be confused with the thing itself.  All the same, some       of these theories are worth looking at.”

            For myself, the cross overwhelms me.  The image is so powerful that I do not preach on Good Friday, but simply retell the story.  What can I add?  The cross is the ultimate statement of our denial of God.  We literally “cross” God out.  We say “No” in the most brutal and direct means possible.  We nail God’s son to a cross, raise him from the ground, and let him die amidst ridicule and threats.  We say “No”, but God in the most extraordinary and gracious way says “Yes” to us.  Jesus offers words of forgiveness from the cross itself.  “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.”  Easter and the Resurrection are God’s confirmation of that grace poured out upon us.  The cross is the sign of God’s suffering love that will not let us go even though holding on to us costs Jesus his life.

            In the living of my life, the image stands before me.  No matter what I do that rejects and or turns away from God, the cross is a constant reminder of God’s faithfulness and love of me.  God will not turn away from me no matter how I say “No”, no matter what the cost.  I am overwhelmed and humbled by such love.  My life has been shaped and changed by that love and continues to be impacted.  I have been marked with the cross of Christ forever.

        

Joseph's Song

Joseph’s Song by Pastor Summer

1.  What can I tell you son

Your life’s begun

A miracle come true

How can I keep you safe

In this world of hate?

Everything’s brand new

The angels greet your coming

But the king sounds the alarm

What can I tell you son

You’re the promised one

But tonight you’re safely in my arms

2.  What can I tell you son

Of what’s to come

The angel didn’t say

I’m to be your guide

Stand by your side

A father I every way

While the angels sing your praises

The king will seek you harm

What can I tell you son

You’re the promised one

But tonight you’re safely in my arms 

3.  What can I tell you son

This world’s undone

By sin and misery

How can we be saved?

God will show the way

And somehow you’re the key

We wait for the coming kingdom

But the world has deadly charm

What can I tell you son

You’re the promised one

But tonight you’re safely in my arms

4.  What can I tell you son

My heart’s been won

As I look into your eyes

What the future holds

We’ve not been told

So we trust the one on high

To keep us in His graces

And to hold us in His arms

What can I tell you son

You’re the promised one

But tonight you’re safely in my arm

Easter Song

1.  Peter came in anguish on that Easter morning

Remembering that bitter night and the way he had run.

He could hear the accusations, hear himself denying,

He could hear the rooster crowing with the coming of the sun.

But on that Easter morning, a new day had begun

His anguish would be taken with the rising of God’s Son.

Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia

Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia

2.      Mary came in sorrow on that Easter morning

Remembering that brutal hill and the way he had cried.

She couldn’t hide the tears, or the empty feeling

Or the haunting question of why he had to die.

But on that Easter morning, a new day had begun

Her sorrow would be taken with the rising of God’s Son.

Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia

Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia

3.      Andrew came in anger on that Easter morning

Remembering the cruel way they had him crucified.

He couldn’t see their reasons or understand their fears

And he vowed that he’d never forgive their lies.

But on that Easter morning, a new day had begun

His anger would be taken with the rising of God’s Son.

 Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia

Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia

4.      Thomas came with questions on that Easter morning

Remembering the dreams they shared as they walked through Galilee.

Was he the Messiah, the one for whom they waited,

The one who would truly set them free?

But on that Easter morning, a new day had begun

His questions would be taken with the rising of God’s Son.

Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia

Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia

Repent! - Good News?

Repent!  When we here the word, we usually envision the person on the street corner with a placard or the fire and brimstone preacher pounding on the pulpit.  For us, there’s an ominous quality to the word.  We rarely think of it as good news.   And yet, “Repent” is how Jesus began his ministry and the scripture tells us that it was good news.  How can that be?  Repentance begins with the painful truth that something is fundamentally broken and off in our world and in our lives and needs to change.  Change is at the heart of repentance.  As difficult as it is to hear that word, it’s true.  The shooting in Parkland is just the most recent reminder that the world is broken and change is needed.  As we look at our own lives, we can own that brokenness.  There’s a cause to our sleepless nights and anxious days that needs to be addressed.  With the call to repentance, Jesus is simply speaking the truth.  The good news is that he came not only acknowledge the need for change but to make that change possible.  Grace, the love of God, is the door to new life and new beginnings.  With grace, change happens.  We sees that in the lives of the people Jesus impacted.  Peter was changed.  Mary Magdalene was changed.  Paul was changed.  That power of change was poured out through Christ into whole world.  That’s why Jesus’ call to repent is good news.  The change we need in our lives, the change we need in the world, is made possible through Christ.

We've got work to do

"We've got work to do."  Those were the final words Officer Steve Perez said to his family as he headed out into the storm, Hurricane Harvey in Houston.  His family didn't want him to go, but Officer Perez had been serving the city of Houston for over 30 years, and there were people in need.  He went out into the storm and tragically lost his life, but he wouldn't have had it any other way.  As I've prayed for Officer Perez's family, I've thought about his words and actions.  In a very real way, they reflect what Jesus said about discipleship.  You go out into the storm because there are people in need.  Jesus' words, "Deny yourself."  You go out into the storm even though it is dangerous.  Jesus words, "Take up your cross."  You go out into the storm because we have work to do.  Jesus' words, "Follow me."  Jesus always made it clear that discipleship was costly.  That cost can get lost in a world that wants things to be easy and risk free.  Even in the church, the cost can be lost because we don't want to lose the idea of grace.  Grace says we don't have to earn God's love.  There is nothing we have to do.  Grace is a gift.  All of this is true, but grace does not need to come at the expense of discipleship.  We need to hear the distinction.  We are disciples not in order to be loved, but because we are loved.  Jesus says to us "I love you, I have forgiven you, and you are mine, now and always.  That's a given.  Now take a look.  There's a storm out there, people are in need, and we've got work to do."  May we hear the call.  May we be disciples of Jesus.  We've got work to do.

Pentecost

Acts 2:11 – “In our own languages we hear them speaking about God’s deeds of power.”

          Pentecost is the day Holy Spirit descended as tongues of fire on those first disciples and sent them out into the streets of Jerusalem.  They told the good news of the Gospel to people from all corners of the known world.  As I look at that story, the miracle of Pentecost is not so much that those first disciples were able to speak in so many different languages to the people gathered in the city.  The miracle is that everyone who listened to those disciples running out into the streets of Jerusalem heard the disciples’ message as good news.  The Gospel of God’s love is universal.  The message speaks to everyone and speaks with power.  And we, as Jesus’ disciples today ,have the opportunity, like those disciples of old, to share that good news.  The question is what stops us?

          We know how to share good news.  We do it all time.  A new child is born into our family, and we will tell everyone we meet.  We‘re compelled to do so.  When I became a Grandpa, I let the world know.  Nothing was going to stop me.  Strangers in the grocery store heard about Anna and Evelyn. 

          However, with the good news of the Gospel, we tend to hold back.  Why?  For some of us, our experience of the Gospel is a private matter.  For some of us, we are still waiting for that transformative experience of the Gospel.  We listen to the stories of others, but do not feel we have our own.  For some of us, we don’t want to be branded a religious fanatic.

          Whatever the reason, we need to listen again to the story of Pentecost.  Everyone who heard the Gospel that day heard it as good news.  People are longing for good news in their lives and we have good news to share.  People need to hear that a God of grace watches over them and walks beside them.  People need to hear that they are forgiven and can be set free.  People need to hear that God is real and at work in the world.  We are the ones who can give voice to God’s promise. 

          My prayer, in this season of Pentecost, is that we open ourselves to the power of the Holy Spirit that can fill us with grace, send us out into the world, and have us tell the story.  The world needs to hear the Gospel.  And we, who have known the Gospel in our lives, are the ones to be a witness.  May we go and tell.

                                                          Peace,

                                                          Pastor Summer

I Was A Stranger

Matthew 25:35 - And Jesus said,  "I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me."

These words of Jesus haunt me, particularly in light of what is happening in the world.  Immigration is a hot topic.  Because of the violence in the Middle East, there are more refugees than at any other time since World War II.  The images are heart breaking.  The numbers are unbelievable.  What is to be our response?  Social media is filled with comments on both sides of the issue.  I have intentionally not joined the fray.  People seem to be shouting at each other rather than listening.  There seems to be a great deal of finger pointing without resolution.  People seem to be hardening their positions and becoming increasingly sure they are right.  All of this brings me back to the words of Jesus.  They will not leave me alone.  They challenge me to see in the stranger, the hungry, and the thirsty, the face of Jesus.  His words do not let me turn away.  They challenge me to find a way to open the door and welcome the stranger, to feed the hungry, and to provide drink for the thirsty.  I know it will not be easy.  I know it will not be risk free.  At times, I am overwhelmed with the challenge, but Jesus' words will not let me go and so I pray.  I pray for guidance, and courage, and grace.  I pray to find a way, in my own life, to open the door.